Casa de Campo Gardens

Casa de Campo is known for its famous golf courses – Teeth of the Dog, Links and Dye Fore – plus all the amenities that a resort of this magnitude could offer – Spa, tennis, polo, skeet shooting, diving, fishing, beaches, restaurants, boutiques, entertainment and a world class marina. It is also known for the luxury homes that surround the resort. However, the essence of Casa de Campo is not defined in the amenities it offers, or the luxury homes, but by the luxurious tropical gardens that set the mood for all else.

Some of these gardens, specially the old ones, have had time to grow into lush tropical gardens that seem like they have been there for centuries. From the moment you drive into the resort you are greeted by rows royal palms – indigenous to the island – surrounded by colorful bougainvillea, plumbago, ferns, and every other species of tropical plant you would expect in this tropical paradise, including ylang-ylang, gardenias and lots of orchids.

Two important factors were very important in the development of these gardens. The first is the genius of G+W of using sugar cane bagasse as mulch/soil in their gardens. Bagasse is the fibrous matter that remains after sugarcane is crushed to extract the juice. For centuries, this bagasse was used for fueling the mill boilers but, it wasn’t very effective. The mill produced tons and tons of bagasse and finding a use for it in the gardens was the best solution for disposal and in turn, the best thing for their gardens – Buganvillas, specially, thrive in this mulch. The second was providing the water to maintain all these gardens, parks, the mill, the resort and the golf courses. As a result of the introduction of all this vegetation and water the area has become more humid. This, in turn, has brought even more native vegetation.

The beauty of this resort is best experienced by walking or riding a golf cart around the neighborhoods. Enjoy the luxury and golf villas and their gardens, as well as the hotel grounds with beautiful walk paths through lush gardens, polo fields, golf courses and Minitas beach. Make sure you bring your camera.